Pandemic Perspectives: Reflective and Creative Approaches at Wellcome Collection 

Pandemic illness has profoundly affected our lives since 2020; it has also shaped and dominated human experience in previous centuries. This one-day Techne-funded workshop aims to provide a supportive and collaborative space for Techne PhD students and other PhD students to reflect on pandemic disease by engaging with the collections at Wellcome Collection, a museum and library which holds rich materials on the history of health, wellbeing and human experience.

The day will be structured around sessions led by a visual artist, a poet and a historian. Each will share their creative and reflective responses to the collections, from medieval European plague recipes and literature on death, to contemporary materials acquired during Covid-19. The workshop will provide a safe, open and non-hierarchical space in which to ask questions such as:

• How did past experiences of pandemic illness differ from or chime with our own recent experiences?
• Whose experiences are present or not present in the collections?
• How can we respond creatively to collections materials on pandemic disease?
• How does it make us feel to encounter these materials?
• How does research intersect with reflection and creativity when we work with these collections?

The programme will allow plenty of space for discussion, so that attendees can get to know each other and talk informally. While you are very welcome to talk about your own lived experience, there is no requirement or expectation for you to do so.

Places are available on a first come, first served basis. To book a place please email Elma Brenner (Wellcome Collection ECRs Programme Lead) at e.brenner@wellcome.org by 15th September 2022. Please include a brief summary of your research area to help with planning the workshop. The travel expenses of Techne students will be funded by Techne.

At Wellcome we are committed to access and inclusion. If you wish to share any requirements with us, we shall do everything we can to support you. For example, you could let us know if you need to take frequent breaks during the workshop, or need a BSL interpreter. You can find our policy on Access, Diversity and Inclusion here.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch at e.brenner@wellcome.org. We look forward to hearing from you.